70s classics like Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, Michael Jackson’s Thriller, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, which Mr Mathie, one of the biggest dealers in Yorkshire, used to have multiple copies of, are becoming ever harder to find.

And he can no longer pick them up for a £1 a time.

“We are having to pay double - but sell them at the same price.”

Spin It Records, Trinity Market, Hull..Catch the Fire a record by Bob Marley and the Wailers, with an unsual cover.

It’s not just the middle-aged rediscovering their passion for vinyl and rebuilding scratched collections. Hipsters and other younger fans are also catching the bug.

“Five years ago the average age group was a 46-year-old white male - now they are in their 20s,” said Steve.

Musician Louis Bean, 20, is typical.

He is a fan of vinyl as “there’s more to hold, aesthetically it’s more pleasing and the design of the sleeve reflects their kind of view point, so you can discover a bit more about the artist.”

Mr Bean, who plays guitar in the Hull band Squalords, says they would like to release music on vinyl, but it is too expensive.

Instead the band has released free downloads - and surprisingly successfully - cassettes: “We sold all 60 cassettes.

“People say records are a bit obsolete, so we thought why not go a bit further and make tapes?”

Mr Mathie, who has run Spin It records in Hull market for 22 years, said more dealers, on the Internet and in markets, and more people buying records, are squeezing supply: “There’s more part-timers, people making a bit of extra money on the side, which you can’t blame them for.

“Everyone is vying for the same stockpile, and it is getting smaller.

“The supply isn’t there so demand is going up - even in the new stuff, the Elvis boxsets came out three weeks ago and were selling for £35, I sold one for £160 because it doesn’t exist, you can’t get one anywhere.”

But there is not necessarily a gold mine waiting in every attic, warned Steve: “Only 40 per cent is desirable nowadays - the other 60 per cent nobody wants, it’s Jim Reeves, Big Band music, country music, it’s hard to get rid of.”

So what does he most lust after? “It would be nice to get a copy of the Sex Pistols God Save The Queen on the A&M label.”

All but a handful of the 25,000 singles were destroyed after the label ditched the rebellious punk rockers just six days after signing them.

One of the handful of remaining singles sold earlier this year for £6,000.

Second in his Holy Grail of collectables would be the Beatles Please Please Me, the very first pressing on the gold Stereo label, and the third Led Zeppelin, the eponymous debut studio album by the English rock band.

Please Please Me sold online for £11,000, says Steve, while Led Zeppelin I, worth £500 10 years ago, is now worth £3,000.

For Steve, however, it’s the run of the mill £5 records that pay his rent.

The problem is people are hanging onto them now. Mr Mathie used to get nine visitors wanting to offload vinyl every week, he said: “I’m lucky if I get one now.”